Christmas in the Burrow
by Crikey3632
Summary: Maggie Black spends Christmas with the Weasleys. Together, they tell tales of the one girl who has touched them all. Follow her, as she discovers who she is and finds friends, fatherhood, love, and the true magic of Christmas.


Christmas in the Burrow

By Maggie Hodges

The cold winter wind whipped through Maggie's hair as she flew through the English country-side. Her broomstick was balanced perfectly underneath her, evidence of a skilled flyer. Trees and green meadows rushed beneath her broom. The snow covering the landscape glittered back at her under the light of the waxing moon, almost to its full state. Maggie spotted lights on the horizon as the Weasley's Burrow came into view. She leaned forward on her broom, gracefully descending to the oncoming hills and hit the ground with a soft _crunch._

Sounds of booming laughter erupted from inside the lop-sided house. Maggie paused to take in the smells of roasting turkeys and baking pies that had drifted outside. Gladness overwhelmed her heart as she thought of the people inside. The same people she considered her family. Finally, she was home.

Maggie twisted the rusty door-handle to the Burrow and let herself inside. The entire house was swarming with decorations. Snow fell from the ceiling while an animated Santa flew throughout the house. Plates of sweets topped every flat surface while a large Christmas tree sat in the living room, twinkling with moving tinsel and shape-shifting ornaments. Before she knew it, a plump, red-headed woman burst from the kitchen, smothering her with a hug.

"Oh, Maggie, we were just wondering where you had gotten off to! How are you? Did you have a nice trip?" Mrs. Weasley said. She loosened her grip on the girl, before holding Maggie at arm's length and examining her from head to toe. "You're looking a big peaky dear, but we'll fix that in a mo. You know how I feel about those long trips of your –"

"Oh, Molly, leave the poor girl alone." Mrs. Weasley was interrupted by a man standing in the back of the living room. She turned to see a tall man with light brown hair and a thin mustache, dressed in shabby clothes. His familiar face was scarred and pale and his hair was speckled with strands of premature gray. Nevertheless, Maggie was ecstatic to see her god-father. She rushed over to him and they embraced in a warm hug. Lupin held on to her tight, kissing her forehead. They shared everything in those moments, packing all of their love, worry, and longing for each other into a single hug. No words had to be said between them, they just knew.

Mrs. Weasley smiled warmly and left the two of them alone. "Dinner's in ten you two."

As Maggie unraveled herself from their hug, Lupin smiled down at her fondly. "It is so good to see you, Maggie. It's been too long. How was school? "

"Good, good. Snape's taking every chance he can to torment me, but that's to be expected. Exams were a piece of cake, though. Question One: Identify the five signs of a werewolf." She said. The sarcasm in her voice was obvious as the pair walked side by side through the house, taking the longest time to reach the kitchen. "I swear to you, it seems like they have the same questions every year."

Lupin smiled at the inside joke. Maggie blew her short black hair from her face as she looked down at her feet. She turned around to face him, forcing him to stop by the stairs. Sadness and desperation both showed on her face. "Where is he, Lupin?"

"He's in the kitchen. The Order is having a meeting tonight, but he'll have to back tomorrow night. It's risky enough for him to be here."

Maggie turned towards the kitchen, but Lupin stopped her before she could go anywhere. He placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. "You of all people should know he can't stay long."

Maggie nodded before entering the crowded dining hall. A wooden table had been set for 14, with food and drinks settled down the middle. The entire Weasley family was here, all 8 of them. Even Bill and Charlie had managed a trip over from Egypt and Romania. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley were seated closet to her; Mr. Weasley at the head of the table. Bill and Charlie were already sitting beside the two parents, catching up on old news. As Maggie stood in the doorway, she felt like she was imposing on a family affair. She didn't share the Weasley's trademark red hair. She stood out with her fairly nice clothes and she lacked the joy that the family had in their faces. She didn't belong here. Mr. Weasley beckoned her in with a wave of his hand. "Come in, Maggie. We have a seat for you at the end of the table."

And that was all she needed for her to feel right at home. All of her worry vanished at the man's words. Tonks and Bill said their hellos as she entered. She chuckled as she noticed the pair sitting beside one another, a last ditch effort from Mrs. Weasley to get the two together.

" Maggie! I'd sure love it if you came over to Romania for the summer." Charlie stood up from his seat and trapped her in a firm handshake. He pulled her in close and whispered in her ear. "We're needing a few extra interns with the new horde of dragons we've got coming from Austraila! But don't tell Mum, she'd have a fit if she knew I was recruiting!"

Charlie let her arm go. As she turned back to the party, he slipped her a mischievious wink. Maggie adored Charlie and she shared his love for dragons, but right now all she wanted to do was to get back to the party. She had to know if he was here. She had to see him. Suddenly, with a loud _pop,_ Fred and George were beside her. She nearly jumped out of her skin when the two Apparated from downstairs.

"Charlie try moving you to Romania, yet?" Fred said.

"He hasn't stopped talking about you all week." George continued. "Maggie this-"

"And Maggie that. You'd think you were the bloody Prime Minister the way he goes at it."

Charlie just rolls his eyes and says to Maggie, "I'd normally be offended, but I'm just glad they're stringing words into sentences now."

She smiled at his words, but it was only a half-hearted smile. Fred and George continued to talk, but she didn't hear what they were saying. Maggie stood on her tip-toes, trying to see around the twins. All she could see was Lupin, and Ginny, and Mr. Kingsley. She spotted the famous trio of Ron, Harry, and Hermione that she knew all about, yet they knew nothing of her. She looked for that tall, elegant man with those deep grey eyes. Those same grey eyes that they shared. But instead, she saw nothing.

"Maggie? Maggie!" She was shaken from her thoughts when Fred snapped his fingers in front of her face. Her attention popped back to the twins as they looked at her with concern. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah? I'm …I'm fine." She said.

"Fred, why don't you go save our seats? Dinner's sure to start soon." George said. His brother left without a word. His eyes met Maggie's and she could see that they were filled with love and concern. "It's him isn't it?"

Maggie didn't answer and she suddenly couldn't meet his eyes. George slowly took her hand, his fingers intertwined with hers. He nodded toward the back of the room, "Come on. He's through here."

George led her through the crowd by the hand, weaving in between the adults to pass through. She earned a dirty look from Harry, Ron, and Hermione when she cut through their conversation. Finally, she saw him. He was slunked down on a chair at the end of the table. He was in an intense argument with Lupin, though his voice was hushed, as if he was trying to hide the bickering.

"No, Lupin! She doesn't-" He stopped short when he saw Maggie. He stood up out of his chair ubruptly and he lacked his usual casual elegance that came with the Black title. He smoothed out his red velvet coat as his moved his wavy black hair out of his face. They stared at one another, not sure of what to do next. Maggie couldn't even believe he was even here, standing right before her eyes. Eventually, he let a smile flicker onto his face, a rare sight that filled Maggie with pure joy as he stared at her with pride.

"Sirius…" She sighed in relief. Together, they clung and grasped each other tightly like they were the only two people left on earth. Maggie's fingers dug into the soft sweet fibers of his coat as if this was only a dream and she was going to wake up any moment. Sirius rested his chin on her head, running his fingers through her long dark hair.

"Oh, Maggie how you've grown…" He said. Sirius pulled back on the hug and gestured to the seat beside him. "Come. Sit beside me."

She took her seat as the rest of the party began to take their's. Lupin sat across from her and George had discretly taken the chair to her right.

"I hear there's to be a meeting tonight, Sirius, with the Order." Harry said from his seat beside Lupin. His two friends were beside him, though they were busy laughing at Tonk's animal impersinations with Ginny, rather than the more serious talk.

"Well you heard right, Harry, though I'm sure Mrs. Weasley will try to persuade you otherwise." Lupin said.

"It's becoming harder and harder to get together outside of the school holidays." Said Sirius. Maggie listened intently to their every word, breathing in the news like she was breathing air. "The Ministry is keeping a close eye on any of Dumbledore's followers."

"So the Christmas holiday is the perfect cover."

Harry raised an eyebrow, confused. "I'm afraid I don't understand. Wouldn't large groups of Aurors gathering in one place give it away?"

Maggie answered for him. "Not on holiday. Families gather together to celebrate, so big groups are common. The party won't register on the Ministry's radar, as long as they don't look too close."

"Exactly." Sirius smiled at Maggie and threw her a wink. Her cheeks burn a soft red at the public display of admiration.

"Well, what about Sirius? The Ministry still thinks he's a murderer! Now more than ever!"

"I can take care of myself, thank you Harry." Sirius said. Maggie was quickly getting irritated with the boy. Harry thought he knew everything, that he was the only one concerned about Sirius.

"What if they catch you? What then? They'll send back to Azkaban! They'll take away your freedom!" Harry said.

"Then we fight!" Maggie said in protest. Harry looked at her like he hadn't even noticed her until now.

"Excuse me, but who the hell are you? I don't think we've been introduced." He said, irritably. Harry was standing up now, overwhelmed with emotion. Maggie looked taken aback by his words. Her eyebrows were raised and she looked at Harry with pure annoyance. Lupin tried to calm the situation. He grabbed Harry's arm, trying to get him back in his seat.

""Everyone, why don't we just calm down. Let us not fight about what we can't control."

"No!" Maggie yelled. She shook off George's attempts to comfort her. The whole table was now staring at the two students, both who were staring at each other with pure defiance. "Who do you think you are, Potter! You don't know what's best for everyone, so stop acting like you're the center of attention."

"Stop!" Lupin said. "Calm-"

"Some things are worth fighting for, Potter! Not everything comes as easy as it does you-"

"EVERYONE STOP!" Sirius looked at him, confused.

"Are you telling me he doesn't know who I am?" She said. He took a deep breath and ran his fingers through his hair. Guilt was written all over his face.

"Maggie, you already know Harry. Harry, this is Maggie Black…" He said. He took a deep breath before continuing.

"She's my daughter."

**Author's Note: This chapters more about introductions than anything else. Leave a comment to tell me what you think of Maggie. I really want the audience to connect with her so leave a note telling me what you think! You know you want to!**


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